Greg Growden

THE clue was in Adam Ashley-Cooper's school report card. Each year his teachers at Berkeley Vale High School on the Central Coast would write: ''Good kid, but easily distracted.''

As a kid, he couldn't keep still. Nothing much has changed. As a Wallaby he has taken this inability to stick to one role to another dimension, to the extent that he will go down as Australian rugby's most versatile player. Since the Wallabies first appeared in 1908, there have been players such as Tim Horan who moved around the park, but no one to the extent of Ashley-Cooper, who has found himself regularly shuffled between fullback, wing, outside-centre and inside-centre.

Ashley-Cooper will tonight make his 35th starting appearance for the Wallabies, and his 18th Test at fullback. He has also appeared six times on the wing, seven at outside-centre, and four at inside-centre. He has also played off the bench six times, primarily as a replacement winger.

In Robbie Deans's three seasons as Wallabies coach, he has used Ashley-Cooper 16 times at fullback, twice on the wing, twice at inside-centre and four times at outside-centre. No wonder Deans describes him as one of the most invaluable players he has seen. And it is not as if Ashley-Cooper is used as a Band-Aid solution. In each of those four positions, he has had spectacular moments and is renowned for being dependable. It is no surprise that a common reply by Ashley-Cooper when asked what position he expected to be selected that week is: ''I wouldn't have a clue.''

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Ashley-Cooper admits the constant switching of positions requires him to concentrate more on his task - it requires involves a lot of clear and precise thought when he is constantly asked to move between back-line positions.

''When I change positions, my mind set revolves around ensuring that I take the skills I have learnt from the other positions into the spot I've been picked at,'' he said yesterday. ''I have always felt that has helped me. It gave me a sense of confidence and belief, as well as bringing something different.

''So that's why I have always felt that I have had a point of difference. And when you change positions, you try not to worry about it. Most of the time I have been involved in a positional change, I have been informed about it early on in the week.

''So I've had a bit of time to prepare. But you would always love more time to make sure you have addressed everything that is needed in that position. There has been times when I've come in really late to a position. When that has happened I've just told myself that I have to bring in the skills I apply at fullback to the midfield, and vice versa. I just try to offer something different. More importantly, I try to offer something.''

It is also something he has long been accustomed to - going right back to his school report days. In his teenage years, he flitted between five-eighth and inside-centre, explaining: ''I was pretty much all over the shop in those days as well.

''Then again. I've never really been happy in the one spot. There's always has to be movement.''

When Ashley-Cooper joined the Brumbies in 2005, he began as a winger but in the final Super 12 round at Suncorp Stadium against the Queensland Reds he was moved to fullback.

''In those days, I wasn't much of a kicker. Basically I didn't kick, and so got a lot of results through just running,'' Ashley-Cooper said. ''And that was what really kick-started my career, because how comfortable I felt and how much I enjoyed running . From then on, I've never really looked back.''

And with it came a certain liking for the fullback position. ''You just have more open field, more freedom, and more of a licence to be able to turn everywhere and anywhere,'' Ashley-Cooper said.

''When comparing fullback and wing, fullback has a tendency to be a bit more structured. As a winger you do have the most freedom, but I've always indicated to my wingers when playing fullback that you have to approach it like a 15's role - so we're working as one. That just generates a lot of support, and trust in each other. If you are on the same wavelength, it goes a long way towards the back three performing well as a unit.'' His other big liking is playing at Suncorp Stadium. That was clearly evident last year when after scoring a try against the Springboks, he made a gargantuan leap, then sprinted to the fence, and body-hugged several stunned spectators. That moments remains one of the most cherished of a fluctuating 2009 Wallabies season.

''I love playing there. It's always a good crowd, and I've always played to draw energy from a crowd. That certainly helps my game. I'm someone who plays on emotion and adrenalin, and for that reason I've always regarded the Suncorp crowd as the best I've played in front of. As for the woman I grabbed last year, she's probably still in a state of shock.''